Disorganized schizotypy and neuroticism in daily life: Examining their overlap and differentiation

•Multidimensional schizotypy offers a useful and unifying framework for understanding schizophrenia-spectrum psychopathology.•The disorganized schizotypy dimension is the least studies of the schizotypy dimensions.•Disorganized schizotypy is associated with trait neuroticism.•However, disorganized schizotypy can be differentiated from neuroticism by its expressions in daily life.•Disorganized schizotypy is a complex construct that plays a central role in schizophrena-spectrum psychopathology. Positive, negative, and disorganized schizotypy dimensions are associated with differential patterns of symptoms and impairment. Historically, disorganized schizotypy has been the least studied of the three schizotypy dimensions. Disorganized schizotypy has been found to be associated with emotional dysregulation, negative affect, and neuroticism. The current study examined the overlapping and differential associations of disorganized schizotypy and neuroticism with experiences assessed in daily life using experience sampling methodology (ESM). A total of 279 undergraduates completed the Multidimensional Schizotypy Scale and the NEO-FFI neuroticism subscale, followed by ESM surveys administered eight times daily for one week. The ESM surveys assessed affect, appraisals of the current situation, social experiences, and schizotypic experiences in daily life. Disorganized schizotypy and neuroticism had similar bivariate associations with daily life experiences. However, multilevel regression analyses indicated that, when entered simultaneously, disorganized schizotypy was predominately associated with elevated schizotypic experiences, negative affect, and emotional dysregulation, whereas neuroticism was associated with elevated negative affect and diminished positive affect. The findings indicate that the pathological expressions of disorganized schizotypy are not simply ascribable to its overlap with neuroticism. Furthermore, the results provide further evidence that disorganized schizotypy is a complex construct that involves disruption of emotion regulation, as well as cognition, communication, and behavior.